Masks such as this beautiful example are typical for animist tribes such as the Rai, Tharu and Terai people in the east of Nepal. They are made from a single large funghi, from Ganoderma or Fomes species, by minimal adjustments; only eyes and mouth and sometimes nose are carved out (or, as is the case here, a nose is made from a different piece of mushroom and attached to the mask).
Masks like this are used for protection; they are hung in houses near doors or windows to protect the house and family against malevolent spirits and diseases. They are the houses of benevolent spirits such as the family's ancestors and are regularly fed with offerings of ghee or wodka and the smoke of incense. Sometimes they are worn by village shamans during ritual or healing ceremonies.
This item is a particularly beautiful specimen of such a mask. It is, especially considering its age and of course fragile nature, in excellent condition. It has a beautiful, balanced shape in which the natural structure of the funghi can still be very well recognised. This mask is quite a large one; it is approximately 36 centimeters wide and 18 centimeters high.
The exact age of this mask is hard to say, but it can roughly be determined somewhere around the middle of the 20th century, or maybe even a little bit earlier.
